“Nothing is worse than active ignorance.” (Goethe) Goethe (pronounced “Gerta”) lived in 18th century Germany and is considered one of the greatest thinkers of the modern era. It’s said that he had an IQ of 220. (That’s higher than mine.) People, who pretended to be smart when they were really ignorant, bothered him. That type of person lingers in today’s world. Goethe also said: “No one ever finishes his apprenticeship.” To be always learning is a virtue! ;-) Jack
FROM NORM'S BLOG: Were Goethe alive today he might label the current political situation as being representative of active ignorance. The two sides are so rigid in their positions that they refuse to even try to see the other’s point of view, especially where the solutions to the problems are concerned. It’s not so much that they disagree upon the problems, just on the best approach to fixing them. Goethe’s term “active ignorance” alludes to the inability (inflexibility) to learn and change, especially from one’s mistakes in life. Sometimes people can become so entrenched with their beliefs that not even overwhelming proof that those beliefs are wrong can change them. Global warming immediately comes to mind. Sometimes people who have a change of heart and mind find that they are still trapped and categorized by memories of their past, at least by others. It’s not that they have not been flexible enough to learn from their mistakes and change; but, rather, that others refuse to see the change in them and relegate them to their past positions. I remember when George Wallace proclaimed that he had realized the mistakes of his racist past and changed his mind and heart on topics of race. Almost no one believed him. As a four-time governor of Alabama and a four-time Presidential candidate, Wallace was the personification of racism and resistance in the South to integration. Then in 1982 he changed -"We thought [segregation] was in the best interests of all concerned. We were mistaken," he told a black group in 1982. "The Old South is gone," but "the New South is still opposed to government regulation of our lives." So, ,he was still inflexible on some things. More recently, Michael Bloomberg has been held up to scrutiny for his past actions as Mayor of New York; specifically his “stop and frisk” campaign against violence in the city that was primarily aimed at blacks and Latinos. Bloomberg has admitted that he was wrong and stated that he has learned from his mistakes. Goethe might have been proud, but his Democratic opponents need something negative to say about him and are not yet ready to move on. They remain bent out of shape. ===JACK: Those of us in business know that "the customer is always right!" ...up to a point. Be it a real estate broker or a pastor, we need to be flexible....just like a contortionist, but even the contortionist can go just so far.
FROM TAMPA SHIRL: Definitely! Learning is necessary every day!===JACK: Be on the lookout for a new lesson to be learned today.
FROM FACEBOOK LIZ: that’s higher than mine, too. my daughter’s is 177... no lie. she skipped the last semester of 4th grade, the 1st of 5th. her teacher, a great guy who previously taught at lawrenceville academy, was shocked when she was tested. said he’d start expecting more from her. she tended to slide by. still does, to an extent. i only tell you this bc you brought up IQs, and you’re a pastor... so i am not bragging, just relating that info.===JACK: We are who we are, no matter what our IQ might be. I've known some people who belong to a group called, Mensa. It's for people who have high IQs, and you have to document your number before you can join. I am more than my IQ, and so are you...and, most certainly, so is your daughter.
FROM WILLMAR REV: "220" . . . that was always a great score for a game of bowling; I wish I could get my weight back to there once again?! I find one generally tries to change the subject when found purposely avoiding the truth of the matter being asked. 0;-/===JACK: Have you thought of changing your thinking from "I wish" to "I will?" We can't do anything to change our IQ, but other things are within our/my/your grasp.
FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY: Never knew I was a per cent higher than him! Not! There is a person in our lives who thinks he is much smarter than us. It’s very aggravating but it’s also funny. Still, we love him.===JACK: Do you know what a pedant is? You may know one.
FROM TRIHARDER: Or wilfully ignorance.===JACK: I'm trying to think of someone who is willfully ignorant...dropouts?...lazybones?...Help me!
FROM BLAZING OAKS: Well, now I know how to pronounce his name, which is new info. for me..I had been saying Get-ay...:-( I knew what my kid's IQ's were at one time, but don't recall knowing my own, which certainly wouldn't compare to 220!! The kid with the highest IQ of mine, did the poorest job of using it, at least intellectually. But he did qualify through interviews for jobs that required advanced degrees that he did not have, but which he was hired to fill, anyway! IQ does not define us, as you pointed out!===JACK: I looked up "Successful people with low IQs." Not surprising...Muhammad Ali (but he was smart) and Britney Spears (she could sing). But surprising...Andy Warhol, Ronald Reagan, JFK (60) and Abe Lincoln (I didn't know that they had IQ tests in his day).
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